WHOLEDUDE – WHOLEDESIGNER – RED BLOOD CELL

WHOLEDUDE – WHOLEDESIGNER – RED BLOOD CELL:

WholeDude – WholeDesigner – Red Blood Cells: In multicellular organisms, cells with the same genes must differentiate into many types. Complex control mechanisms determine which genes are active in a given cell at a given time. Human life begins as a single fertilized Egg Cell. The multicellular organism grows and develops as it has definite capabilities for differentiation. The “Design” of cells has been modified to serve the specialized functions of tissues and organs that comprise the human body. Red Blood Cells are “designed” to perform their highly specialized functions.

If man is viewed as a multicellular organism, the human subject finds his objective existence because of the living functions of the cells, tissues, and organ systems that provide the biological basis for that existence. In multicellular eukaryotes, cells with the same genes must differentiate into many types. Multicellularity is accomplished by definite capabilities for differentiation. The functional differentiation is not a simple process that can be called adaptation. To achieve differentiation, complex control mechanisms determine which genes are active in a given cell at a given time. The “Design” of cells has been modified by a predetermined plan to serve the specialized function of tissues and organs. The structural differentiation and the functional organization of various organ systems makes man a very complex living organism. It must be clearly understood that the living cell is a thermodynamically unstable system. This means that without a continuous input of energy, a cell will degrade spontaneously into a nonliving collection of molecules. The cells that comprise the human organism derive their energy by oxidation of food substances such as glucose. The cells of the body require oxygen to obtain the energy stored in food substances. The loss of oxygen is very critical as there is no means of storing oxygen in the human body. During the entire course of human life, the human body requires continuous delivery of oxygen to its various cells, tissues, and organs. The Red Blood Cells display functional subordination to the requirements of the organism as a Whole. Altruism is a theory of conduct that regards the good of others as the end of moral action. The Red Blood Cells have very short, individual lifespans and the entire period of their existence involves unselfish concern for the welfare of other cells.

THE RED BLOOD CELL – ERYTHROCYTE – THE RED CORPUSCLE:

WholeDude – WholeDesigner – Red Blood Cell: Erythropoiesis. Red Blood Cells are formed in the bone marrow. Hemoglobin Synthesis begins during the Proerythroblast stage of the RBC Cycle. Heme synthesis takes place in the mitochondria and the protein, globin molecule is synthesized in ribosomes. The mature Red Cells have no nuclei, and no intracellular organelles like the mitochondria and the ribosomes.

WholeDude – WholeDesigner – Red Blood Cell: Red Blood Cells are packed with hemoglobin. Each Red Cell contains over 600 million hemoglobin molecules. A normal man has about 5 liters of blood containing more than 25 trillion Red Blood Cells. Each lives for about 100 to 120 days. Red Blood Cells sustain their meagre energy needs by a form of anaerobic respiration. If man is viewed as a biotic community of cells, Red Cells show no concern for their individual gains or losses and they serve and contribute to the continuation of the Whole community.

Red Blood Cells, or Erythrocytes, or Red Corpuscles are tiny, flat, round, biconcave disks, with depressed center, averaging 7.5 microns in diameter. In its profile view, the Red Blood Cell appears dumbell-shaped. A normal man has about 5 liters of blood containing more than 25 trillion Red Blood Cells. There are about 5.2 million Red Blood Cells per cubic millimeter of blood in adult humans. The normal lifespan of Red Cells is only about 100 to 120 days. More than 200 billion Red Cells are normally destroyed each day by the spleen and must be replaced. The creation of new Red Cells and their subsequent destruction proceeds during all the days of human life. The Red Cells give the blood its characteristic color. The cell is flexible and can change its shape to pass through extremely small blood vessels. It is covered with a membrane composed of lipids and proteins. The mature Red Blood Cells lacks a nucleus and hence cannot divide into new daughter cells. The mature Red Blood Cell also lacks intracellular organelles called mitochondria which provide energy for metabolic functions. During the course of its development and maturation, the nucleus and mitochondria disappear from the Red Cell. The amount of oxygen required by the Red Cell for its own metabolism is very low. The Red Cell shows the features of a careful design or plan that makes it to perform its function of delivering oxygen with great efficiency. In invertebrate organisms, the oxygen-carrying pigment called Heme is found in a free state in the plasma for they lack the Red Blood Cells. The concentration of Heme pigment and the biconcave shape of the Red Blood Cell makes it very efficient to perform the function of exchange of gases; the Red Cell can deliver almost all of its oxygen it carries and free it into the tissues where there is demand for oxygen and its shape allows oxygen exchange at a constant rate over the largest possible area.

WholeDude – WholeDesigner – Red Blood Cell: The Red Cell has the ability to work as an oxygen sensor and it also has the ability to modulate the tone of the blood vessel in which it travels passively. By initiating a mechanism, the Red Cell can cause an effect called vasodilation that would increase the flow of blood in blood vessels to meet the local tissue oxygen demand.WholeDude – Whole Designer – Red Blood Cell: The Red Cells move passively in the blood circulation, but can actively interact with the blood vessel in response to the oxygen tension of the tissues. These interactions are helped by PR(Purinergic Receptor), Erythrocyte-derived Adenosine triphosphate(ATP), Gi(Heterotrimeric G Protein), cAMP(3’5′-Adenosine monophosphate), PKA(Protein Kinase A), CFTR(Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, ? unidentified conduit for ATP release + stimulation. Through oxygen-dependent release of the vasodilator ATP, signal transduction within the RBC and microvessels, the SMC(the smooth muscle cell) of the blood vessel is stimulated to dilate. The signals pass through the Endo(endothelium) or the cells that line the inner surface of the blood vessel.

The main function of the Red Cells is to transport oxygen from the lungs to the tissues and organs of the entire human body. During the process of oxidation, the cells generate carbon dioxide as a waste product which must be removed. The Red Cells carry carbon dioxide to the lungs and release it to be returned to the atmospheric air. This is possible because of hemoglobin which forms unstable, reversible bond with oxygen; in the oxygenated state it is called Oxyhemoglobin and is bright red in color. When oxygen is delivered, in the reduced state the hemoglobin is purple-blue and this color can be easily noticed from the color of the veins that return blood to heart from various parts of the body. Asphyxiation occurs when the blood contains an excess of substances like carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide with which hemoglobin forms semipermanent or permanent compounds instead of reversible bonds that hemoglobin forms with oxygen.

HEME PIGMENT AND HEMOGLOBIN – THE MAGIC OF CREATION:

WholeDude – Wholedesigner – Red Blood Cell: The Magic of Creation will be appreciated by simply comparing the structure of Hemoglobin molecule with Chlorophyll molecule. The affinity of Hemoglobin molecule for oxygen is predetermined by the ability of Chlorophyll molecule to trap radiant energy which is converted into chemical energy during the photosynthetic reaction. These molecules perform goal-oriented, sequential actions to achieve a predetermined purpose. Living things obtain energy not because of random, unguided, interactions of chemical molecules. WholeDude – WholeDesigner – Red Blood Cell: The designing effect of pigments. Among biochromes, Heme, and Chlorophyll are the most important pigment substances that provide a striking contrast in color while having similar molecular structures.WholeDude – WholeDesigner – Red Blood Cell: The four subunits( 2 alpha, and 2 beta chains) of tetrameric Hemoglobin molecules. The synthesis of these chains need genetic information derived mainly from chromosomes 16 and 11. The Magic of Creation will be appreciated when its structure and function is compared with the structure and function of Chlorophyll molecules that impart green color to plants. WholeDude – WholeDesigner – Red Blood Cell: Heme is a respiratory pigment found in the Red Blood Cells of all vertebrates and some invertebrates. Pigment is a substance that imparts color to materials. Plants derive their green color from Chlorophyll pigment, and blood derives it red color from Heme pigment. Both Chlorophyll and Heme are similar molecules containing ring structures called Porphyrins. Chlorophyll contains Magnesium and Heme contains Iron that imparts the red color.

Adult hemoglobin is an alpha(2):beta(2) tetrameric hemeprotein; a combination of heme and the protein component called globin. Each subunit of a hemoglobin tetramer has a heme prosthetic group. The variations in amino acid composition impart marked differences in hemoglobin’s oxygen carrying properties. The quaternary structure of hemoglobin leads to physiologically important allosteric interactions between the subunits. Oxygen is incrementally loaded into the four subunits. In deoxygenated tissue, oxygen is incrementally unloaded from the four subunits and the affinity of hemoglobin for oxygen is reduced. Thus at the lowest oxygen tensions found in very active tissues, the bonding affinity of hemoglobin for oxygen is very low allowing maximal delivery of oxygen to the tissues. To maintain the status called good and positive health, the cells, tissues, and organs of the multicellular human organism have to be interacting with each other in a harmonious manner. These interactions during normal, good health display characteristics such as mutual assistance, mutual cooperation, mutual tolerance, and mutual functional subordination to provide a benefit to the human individual who lives because of the functions of the cells, tissues, and organs that comprise his human body.

SPIRITUAL BIOTIC INTERACTIONS – THE ROLE OF RED BLOOD CELLS:

WholeDude – WholeDesigner – Red Blood Cell: The nature of Spiritual Biotic Interactions that maintain man’s existence can be studied by knowing the role of Red Blood Cells and their interaction with the tissues, and organs of the entire human body.

The terrestrial human organism represents a biotic, or biological community of about 100 trillion, individual, independent, mostly autonomous living cells that participate in constant interactions with each other. These interactions at cellular level are dependent upon the cognitive nature of the living cell. The living cell has the ability to recognize the presence of other cells in its immediate, external environment. The life of all of the cells in this biotic community that forms the human body requires energy input from an external source. The term “Spiritual” describes a relationship, a partnership, an association, a bonding, or a connection between two living entities that can formulate an interaction that can display features such as assistance, cooperation, tolerance, subservience, subordination, sympathy, and compassion to provide some benefit to the partner that is participating in the biotic interaction. The Red Blood Cells interact with the cells of tissues, and organs of human body to provide them a service, assistance, or a benefit without seeking any benefit in return. The Red Blood Cells do not seek to reproduce, have very minimal requirement for energy and willingly deliver oxygen to the tissues and relieve them from the burden imposed by the waste products of their metabolic activities. The ‘spiritual’ nature of such interaction is a reflection of the ‘spiritual’ nature of the Creator of the living entities who could be called the WholeArtist, the WholeDesigner, or the WholeArchitect who meticulously planned and instituted the mechanisms and provided the necessary tools for such varied interdependent, and interrelated interactions between living cells. Thus, the Red Blood Cells constitute the principal stabilizing, connective linkage among the trillions of living cells that comprise the biological community which gets recognized as the human being.